


animal

by orphan_account



Category: NCT (Band), 鬼滅の刃 | Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (Anime)
Genre: Crossover, Demons, M/M, forest breathing, i love nezuko and so does renjun, renjun is lowkey zenitsu, tanjiro!yuta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-23
Updated: 2020-03-23
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:54:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22953655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: what are you waiting for? take a bite of my heart tonight.orjeno makes the biggest mistake of his life.
Relationships: Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	animal

**Author's Note:**

> 4 things i need to say before you read this:
> 
> 1\. extra large spaces between paragraphs indicate a flashback or a flash forward (sorry if it's confusing hhhh).  
> 2\. 10000000000% credit to my friend who helped me come up with forest breathing :D  
> 3\. i apologize for the lack of action i cannot for the life of me write fight scenes LMAO  
> 4\. i described the bloody stuff as vividly as i can which isn't saying much because i don't write descriptions very well BUT nevertheless if you are uncomfortable with those kinds of descriptions do be warned !!
> 
> i hope you enjoy this :))

_being the new kid doesn't really mean anything,_ thought jeno, _but it does if the new kid is jaemin na._

jeno remembered the first time he laid eyes on the pretty boy—mesmerizing light brown and green eyes that reminded him of the forest, fluffy hair with blonde highlights, a devilishly charming smile that had an air of mystery to it. the boy was covered head to toe as he entered, wearing a pair of jeans, sneakers, and an oversized pink hoodie as well as a pair of sunglasses that rested nicely on the bridge of his nose. it was strange—jeno will admit—that jaemin brought an umbrella, of all things, to school on such a clear, lovely, sunny day, but he resolved that it was probably a bit too bright for perfect weather. he remembered the look in jaemin's eyes when they first locked with his: they were empty, yet twinkling with delight and a bit of mischief. his sharp jaw and handsome face gave jeno little to no help at preventing himself from making a number of once-overs at the new kid as he walked down the hallway and disappeared into the nurse's office. sure, he was pretty obvious. but he couldn't help it. even as the chatter in the hallway began to fade as many students trudged to their first class, jeno stood, by his rusty red locker, locked in the same position as he was when he looked into jaemin's eyes, thinking about the texture of the boy's snow-white skin as it shone underneath the fluorescent lights that blinked every so often at the beauty underneath them.

_pat. pit pat. pat pat._

it was oddly silent. jeno shrunk back against a tree as he listened to his tears dropping one by one onto his bloodied uniform shorts.

he remembered the first thing jaemin had said to him. it was on the same day, in fact, that jeno first saw him. as jeno made his way to his first class and passed by the nurse's office, a hand shot out and grabbed his arm, pulling him back with a the strength of a tow truck (jeno was probably exaggerating, but it was sudden nonetheless). jeno gasped at the sudden movement, only to come face to face with the new kid, a tiny, budding feeling of warmth appearing in his chest. the boy looked straight at him—they were eye-to-eye when they stood together—with a bright smile, showing off teeth that shone like the sun.

"i'm jaemin na. are you the jeno mrs. han was talking about?"

jeno gripped the sharp dirt underneath his body and pushed himself up, back onto his bare feet. the dirt dug deep into his skin as he began to stand and teeter for a few seconds on each foot. he couldn’t remember at which point he had lost his shoes while he was running. he winced as the dirt entered the scratch wound on his forearm, but he pushed it to the back of his mind. he squinted around him through the darkness: no exit to the forest seemed close. _yuta was right_ , he thought, the feeling of dread growing in his chest, digging inside, sucking every positive feeling or energy like a black hole of pessimism. _he was right. he was right. he was right._

jaemin and jeno had started dating, much to the dismay of _both_ their groups of fangirls (and fanboys). jeno hadn't known exactly _why_ they started dating each other. the only reason he could string in his head was that "it felt right." movie theatres and plain fields to stargaze in were always jaemin's go-to date locations when they had enough time to spend together.

“my parents weren’t astronomers, but they loved the stars nonetheless,” he had said one night, looking up at the stars with a sad smile. jeno noticed a pinkish hue to his eyes when the stars shined on them; it reminded him of yuta’s younger sister before she had suddenly disappeared two years prior. “they always pointed out which star was part of which constellation, and…”

“were?” jeno asked, wrapping his arm around jaemin as blades of grass poked his hand from underneath the picnic blanket. he looked at jaemin, who looked at the sky with blank eyes. the blank look turned into a glare, and he closed his eyes for a few seconds, taking a deep breath, before he spoke again.

“my parents are dead. they were killed trying to escape from the north to the south while i made it through,” he spoke bitterly, fist clenched.

“i’m… i’m sorry.”

“no, don’t be,” jaemin replied with a scowl. “they were foolish to think they could cross that border as they were.”

jeno’s brows furrowed. _as they were?_

for jeno's sixteenth birthday celebration, he brought all his friends together, old and young, and introduced jaemin. there were chenle and jisung—a young, inseparable pair of beloved underclassmen. then there was renjun. a peculiar one he was, always going about hearing imaginary sounds and being on guard at the smallest things possible. he was similar to the final and oldest of jeno’s closest friends, yuta nakamoto, a second-year college student who always sniffed the ground like a dog on a trail. yuta and renjun both knew each other; it was some kind of training camp or boy scouts group—jeno didn't pay much attention. all he knew was that they would always sneak around together, disappearing at the wrong times and coming back all scratched and bruised, earning the worry of everyone except jaemin, who would always nonchalantly shrug at their injuries, looking at them every once and a while.

"they're probably doing it somewhere," chenle commented with a roll of his eyes. "can't they tell that we know?"

“must be pretty rough,” jisung snickered.

jeno panted, electricity shooting throughout all of his muscles—he was tired.

"jeno," yuta had warned, "don't get too close to jaemin."

"w-what?" jeno was taken aback. "you can't expect me to avoid my boyfriend, yuta."

"jeno, you don't understand—"

"has something been going on with you three?"

yuta stepped back, eyes wide, red ponytail swishing back and forth behind him. one of the empty desks in the empty classroom stopped him from going any further. jeno folded his arms.

"don't think i didn't notice. you, renjun, and jaemin have been acting all weird and passive-aggressive towards each other. what's going on? am i missing something? did you guys already meet before i introduced you?"

yuta closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and reopened them. "you really want to know?" his eyes were filled with a mixture of pity, care, and sadness. "you're not going to believe me."

"try me."

yuta sighed. "laugh at me, do whatever you want. just listen. jaemin's a demon, and if you're not careful, he will kill you and eat you."

jeno remembered laughing.

“just take this,” yuta grunted, grabbing jeno’s hand and shoving a small purple pouch in it. “it’s wisteria. demons hate that stuff. if you don’t believe me, just humor me. it’s for your own good.”

_not like this. please, no, not like this,_ jeno pleaded and prayed to any deity that listened. but they were silent.

"done playing tag?" rumbled a deep voice. jeno jumped and slowly looked at the tree above him to see a pair of glowing red eyes that resembled that of a cat. he quivered as the corners of jaemin's lips turned up into a large smile, revealing a set of white canines that threatened to rip through jeno's flesh even though they were about ten feet apart from each other. veins bulged out of his head, framing his face with what looked like branches and branches of skin. jaemin's legs swang back and forth, almost childlike, as he continued to smile and savor the last moments of his prey.

"no... no, please," jeno mumbled, taking a small step back as he kept his eyes locked on jaemin. "i don't want to die."

jaemin simply sat there, licking blood— _jeno's_ blood—off his green claws as he stared back; he stopped swinging his legs back and forth and locked his eyes on jeno like a homing missile locking onto an enemy plane. he enjoyed all the fear, all the pain, and all the sadness radiating off of jeno in that very moment. _cute_ , he thought. the very look of vulnerability made him want to devour his boyfriend—no, _meal_ —right then and there. jeno was a fool, such a gullible boy, falling prey to him and his plans. jaemin would give him credit, however, for making him remember parts of his human life. from what he heard, only hunters managed to do that after delivering the death blow. but though he was impressed, he was pissed. demons were above humans. they were the top of the food chain. the very thought that jaemin was once a human disgusted him, and those disgusting, _human_ emotions he felt after remembering a smidgen of his previous life made his blood boil.

jaemin dropped down from the tree and ran behind jeno just as he turned to run; as he gently pinned jeno to a tree, his eyes glowed with pleasure as he observed the trembling body. he reached out to touch him—a little hurt when jeno pulled back in horror—feeling his soft, warm flesh that he could pierce in the blink of an eye. he felt his stomach growling at the mere thought of it. in no time, jeno's back was flat against the tree, jaemin's nose right on his neck, sniffing the fear-infused blood that penetrated his skin with the same evil grin on his pretty face. with one clawed hand, he lifted jeno's arm and licked the scratch wounds he had inflicted earlier, taste buds going into utter bliss as the blood came in contact with them. then he grudgingly pulled away, not so far so jeno could escape, but not too close for him to bite. he kept jeno firmly in place, partly because of the fear he instilled, but mostly because he held him down with one arm and a leg.

then, he smelled something absolutely repulsive. as the scent entered jaemin’s nose his face contorted to one of pure disgust; it seemed to burn his nose hairs—literally. the disgustingly sweet smell of the pouch of wisteria in jeno’s hand invaded most of his senses: his vision blurred, his tongue felt numb, his nose ached, there was a deafening ring in his ears. he glared at jeno with his catlike eyes, baring his clenched teeth in rage and pain. a clawed hand made its way to jeno’s face, striking him on his left cheek. jeno reeled back in pain, causing the small pouch of wisteria to fall to the ground, spilling all its contents. a little bit of it reached jaemin’s bare feet, causing a painful sting that made its way through all his veins.

jeno hated to see jaemin like this, but he had to live.

but once more, after a few steps away from the demon, he found himself pinned to another tree, teary red eyes burning through his soul, eating him out mentally instead of physically. jaemin’s lips curled back in a snarl. “never. ever. do that again.”

“you’re not the jaemin i know, aren’t you? who are you?”

"congratulations, jeno,” jaemin continued, ignoring the questions and letting a claw trace the bleeding mark on jeno’s left cheek, “you’ve managed to piss me off. i guess i can’t blame you, though. survival is always a top priority for all living beings.

“but tell me, how did you manage to get that little pouch? was it yuta? renjun? i’ve always hated them, those demon slayers and their _goody-goody_ beliefs about justice when they go killing us left and right. all we’re doing is living a little longer.”

“b-but you’re going to _kill_ —”

jaemin hushed jeno by pressing a clawed finger to his lips, sliding it down almost teasingly. it came off at his chin with a little _flick_ , making a tiny cut right in the middle. he chuckled. “you’re so cute. you always were. i think i’ll keep you alive. i’ve eaten enough pretty boys on accident to learn how to control myself.” he shot jeno another fanged smile that sent shivers down his spine.

“then again, i say that every time.” he bit on his own lip, piercing the skin and letting a little blood flow out, then leaned in to press a kiss onto his boyfriend's lips. "blood demon art: infatuation."

༺═──────────────═༻

"another disappearance, yuta. another sixteen-year-old boy," renjun croaked, slamming down a flyer on the apartment table, showing the face of his best friend. "he took jeno, yuta. he took him!"

"we don't know if it really was jaemin who took him," yuta simply replied, a scowl on his face, as he tied his red hair up into a ponytail. "and we don't know if he's actually dead."

"what do you mean, 'we don't know'! the damn demon's been eyeing him ever since he stepped foot in our school!" renjun stood up in exasperation, knocking his chair over. he winced at the loud sound; regardless, he glared at yuta. "demons are pure evil. whose side are you on!"

yuta glared back as a response. "i'm on _your_ side. my sister made me realize that not all demons are pure evil."

"right, your demon sister. she was a special case. she was why i agreed to it, but i was wrong. _this_ is not a special case. he's just like the rest of them. i know it." hate laced through renjun's words as disgust dripped from them.

renjun turned and fidgeted with his friendship ring in his finger, feeling the grooves from the engraving of jeno's name. jeno had always worn his (he was the one who bought them in the first place), no matter what the circumstance. renjun remembered a time in their swimming class together that jeno's ring had slipped out of his hand and sunken down to the bottom of the pool. jeno was a terrible swimmer despite his built body, so renjun had to dive down and retrieve it before jeno would do something stupid instead. but that moment reminded him of how much their friendship meant to jeno, and it pained renjun that he couldn't do anything to save him from _jaemin_.

a million regrets bombarded his mind about things he should've said and things he could've done. he could have offered to walk home with both of them—he carried his _nichirin_ sword on his back at all times—in case jaemin decided to attack once the sun set. he could have been there to usher jeno into class while he stood there, frozen beside his locker after jaemin passed by on the first day of school. he could have warned jeno about jaemin like yuta had to add more emphasis on how important it was to keep away. but most importantly, he should have said "no."

"renjun... i have a question," jeno said, wringing his hands together. "you know jaemin, right? the one i introduced to you guys on my birthday?"

renjun stared at him with furrowed brows, formulating an idea of what was to come. "yeah."

"i'm planning on asking him out. are you okay with that? i noticed you two have some kind of tension, and i don't want that to ruin our friendship. it means everything to me. it has more than a boyfriend could ever give."

renjun stared at jeno in shock. jeno thought about him and his feelings before going up to jaemin and asking him out, just to preserve their friendship. renjun almost teared up from happiness, but he suppressed it with a hard blink and a gulp. he thought about jaemin, the demon he was always suspicious about, the one he could not come around to kill, even when his crow ordered him to (he had to put up with hours upon hours of squawking every morning), because jeno was so fond of him. he wanted to say no—jeno would definitely get killed—but thought more and more about yuta's sister, the beauty of the town even with that large bamboo muzzle covering the lower half of her face, killing demons left and right alongside her brother. _what if jeno and jaemin's relationship really is genuine? what if jaemin's like nezuko?_

"no need to worry about me, jeno," renjun cooed, hesitantly rubbing his best friend's shoulder with a smile on his face. "i trust we'll always be together."

the resulting smile on jeno's face was one of the brightest renjun had ever seen.

renjun stared bitterly at yuta’s apartment door as he waited for his roommate to get ready to leave. his sword pressed uncomfortably against his back from the weight of his backpack, as it did everyday, and he ignored it, resolving that he would get used to it as the day went on. he wished he could have just brought a gun. it was smaller and therefore easier to carry. it got the job done, too.

 _a demon’s weak point is its head_ , his master had said. _swords will cut it off. guns won’t._

then again, there was a demon slayer who fought with a shotgun. but then again, he ate demons since it wasn’t enough.

“nezuko!” renjun yelled. “get your lazy brother up here already!”

“relax, relax!” yuta exclaimed, exiting the restroom, adjusting his _hanafuda_ earrings. “i didn’t know you were always _this_ eager to go to school.”

“i’m not eager to go to school,” renjun gritted, clenching his fists. “i can’t wait to beat the hell out of that bastard demon.”

yuta sighed. “i know it’s hard to wrap your mind around jeno’s disappearance, but we can’t just go attacking others at school. you’ll be hurt and suspended—you know that.”

“i know. i don’t care. even if it’s just a confrontation, i’m fine.”

“renjun, we both know that’s not enough for you.” yuta dropped his backpack onto the floormat and reached for the landline.

“what the hell are you doing?” renjun growled, eyeing the phone inside yuta’s hand.

yuta ignored him, keeping his back hunched and turned away and carrying the landline a bit far from the door so that renjun could not get a smidgen of his hushed conversation with whoever was on the other line. renjun knew better than to try and pry, so he stood by the door, arms crossed, foot tapping on the tiled floor impatiently. as soon as yuta put the phone down, renjun’s mouth began moving.

“who was that?”

“the school. i called you in sick,” yuta said, picking up his bag and heading for the door.

“sick! i’m not sick, you idiot!” renjun snarled, fingernails digging into his palm. “you’re doing this so i don’t get to give jaemin what he deserves, isn’t it? can’t you see you’re defending _them_ ? huh, yuta? people like _you_ are the reason demons still—”

yuta dropped his bag once again and grabbed renjun by the collar, slamming him against the wall with almost lightning speed. “still what? i dare you to say it,” he threatened. “i’m doing this so you don’t jeopardize the demon slayer corps _and_ your own life. i care about jeno as much as you do, but doing _this_ won’t do jack.” he released his hold on renjun, who still glared at him. “you don’t leave this apartment until nightfall. go to jaemin and rescue jeno. i have another mission, but i’ll join you as soon as i can. our locations are nearby.”

renjun didn’t respond. yuta sighed and shook his head. “i’m leaving. nezuko, don’t let renjun leave the apartment!”

“mm!”

with a few quick footsteps, nezuko stood between renjun and the door, pink eyes sparkling, matching the ribbon that tied her black hair to the side. yuta rubbed her head, and she closed her eyes in an eye smile that oddly looked like jeno’s, head rocking back and forth in unison with her brother’s hand. renjun felt his heart leap at the sight. as yuta finished, he glared at renjun one more time.

 _boom_.

as the door slammed shut, renjun prepped up his bag with a small jump and proceeded to nezuko, a scowl etched on his face.

“nezuko, let me go through.”

“mm-mm!” she shook her head and spread her arms wide as if protecting the door from renjun—and rightly so. renjun had knocked the door down before, much to yuta’s dismay, and he would again if nezuko hadn’t stepped in.

“nezuko.”

she shook her head, the ends of her pink bow swaying back and forth as if they were strands of her hair.

“nezuk—”

renjun felt a hard blow to his chest that sent him flying across the room. his back hit the wall with a painful _crack_ as nezuko watched, pink eyes blinking innocently as the veins surrounding her face receded. his head shook, and he felt his brain wobbling back and forth from the impact. he rubbed his head in exasperation.

“sometimes i forget that you’re a demon, nezuko,” renjun groaned as nezuko dashed around the house, making sure the windows were locked. renjun could hear the sizzle of flesh as nezuko’s fingers burned and healed each time they were exposed to the morning sunlight.

_night, then. we’ll meet at night._

he spent the entire day thinking over strategies that would enable him to easily decapitate jaemin (and a little bit of daydreaming of nezuko, even though she was right in front of him). he wondered if jeno would still be attached to him, if he were still alive, even after almost dying at jaemin’s hand. would he be dead? it was unlikely that a hungry demon could hold off eating someone after a day or two.

as the full moon shone in the sky, renjun sheathed his _nichirin_ sword and looked out the window. the air in the apartment smelled different. he wasn’t one to notice slight changes, but he felt the nerves within him alter the environment around him. he smelled of the sweat that pooled in the creases of his body, getting absorbed into his uniform. he made sure to button up the thick, brown, loose-fitting jumpsuit to his neck to avoid any dangers involving his decapitation. even from their first encounter, renjun could tell that jaemin was a vain demon, with his attraction to the stars and the mirror in the second floor boys restroom. if jaemin found him pretty, and jeno was a pretty boy, the head would definitely be left uneaten.

at that thought, renjun imagined the worst-case scenario. jeno’s mangled body lay on the ground, teeth marks and tear marks creating strings of red and pink flesh. his head would be propped up on a high tree branch so that the blood would drip, drip, and drip, staining the green grass beneath it red. if one would look up he could see the blood-stained bone of his neck that had been dislocated from his spine. jeno’s skin would have been pale already from the amount of blood drained; he must have been drying there since the other night.

his anxiety, anger, and grief grew the more he imagined it; he would succeed in his mission for sure, especially if jeno was eaten.

as renjun made his way to the door, fighting spirit full and burning within his chest, he felt two tugs on his sleeve. he turned around to face nezuko, in her box, arm outstretched. her box was directly behind him and open so that he could see her. she then closed the door to the box, giving an affirming “mm-mm!” once it was secure.

“nezuko, i’m not taking you. yuta will freak,” renjun sighed. “and if you get hurt, i’d never forgive myself.”

the door to the box slowly creaked open. nezuko sighed through her nose and stood up from her box, walking towards him, wrapping her arms around his arm. renjun looked into her pretty, pleading, puppy-dog eyes and blushed.

“f-fine,” he said with a huff as nezuko cheered (“mm-mm!”) and rushed back into her box. “but promise me you’ll be careful. man, i don’t understand why you’re so cute while your brother—”

the box jumped. “mm!”

“right…” he chuckled. “i can’t complain about him to you.”

༺═──────────────═༻

out of all places in the world, renjun loathed the forest, especially at night.

he remembered a specific time when he had almost turned into a spider in the forest, and he _hated_ spiders. after that fateful night, he tried to steer clear of forests as much as possible. luckily, he wasn’t assigned any missions in the forest for a good year until now, when he found himself standing in the backyard of an abandoned house, staring at the intimidatingly tall and dark oaks and conifers and whatnot that spread throughout the vast surrounding like a sea of green. the soft air of an april night kissed his cheeks as if it were trying to reassure him that he was going to survive the night. he heaved the box containing nezuko back onto his shoulders as it began to slip and fall. he heard a small _thunk_ in response.

“sorry, nezuko,” renjun said with a small laugh. he looked to the ground. “i don’t know why you like it in that box all the time. you could’ve just walked… then again, you’d probably want to save your energy. i have a bad feeling jaemin’s gonna be a tough one.”

with that, he took his first step into the forest, then another, then another. dry leaves crunched under his feet as the gravel and dirt tore them apart. nothing other than the trees lived in the forest. he could hear nothing, from the heartbeat of animals lurking in the darkness to the tiny tapping of insect feet on the trees and leaves to the flap of wings in the air. the only things he could hear were his own steady heartbeat and the irregular, quick one of nezuko.

by the time he was so deep into the forest that the stars were blocked out renjun heard a faint heartbeat, like a steady pulse. as he continued walking the pulse got louder. it was steady and slow like the heartbeat when someone is sleeping. it was human. renjun sighed in relief when he made that discovery, not only because it was not a demon but also because the person was still alive, and that person might be jeno. at that thought, renjun dashed for the beat, stopping in front of a large tree in the middle of a clearing. and he was horrified.

the Christmas tree’s thick trunk spewed tentacle-like roots from its base. garlands of dead leaves were hung here and there on some leafless branches. the only lights that illuminated the tree were those from the stars, and its originally green leaves were covered in red and brown. its upper half was covered in ornaments of handsome and gorgeous heads, all of which were neatly trimmed at the middle of the neck. for some reason they weren’t rotting: hairs didn’t fall out, skins weren’t decomposing, lips were plump and shiny. drained of blood, however, all the heads were as pale as the moon, yet the facial expressions on them seemed to be that of love and comfort. renjun felt disgustingly warm in his stomach as he scanned through all the heads, checking to see if jeno was there. but he hadn’t reached the top.

the top of a Christmas tree is traditionally a large star or angel, tying the bright, beautiful look all together. but this was no angel. at the top of the tree, sitting cross-legged as he munched on a severed arm, was jaemin, nonchalantly glancing at the demon slayer with his red, catlike eyes.

“like what i’ve done with the place? less blood, yeah?” he asked, waving the arm he was eating around to motion about the area. “i was just in the middle of taking them down. i just got a little hungry.”

renjun’s blood boiled. “where the hell is jeno?” he gritted out. “i didn’t see him in your little collection.”

jaemin jumped down from the top, wiping blood from the corner of his lips and setting the arm on a lower branch for him to take later. renjun tensed, grip tightening on the handle of his sword. jaemin walked behind the tree where the source of the faint heartbeat was. he grabbed whatever it was he turned to but fell back as it tackled him to the ground. jaemin let out a low chuckle as he pet the back of jeno’s head like one would to an energetic puppy, giving it a little scratch with his green claws. jaemin planted a kiss on jeno’s forehead as jeno pulled back, eyes glazed over and lovestruck.

renjun glared at the sight, disgusted at what he had just seen. jeno hadn’t disconnected, keeping his arms around jaemin’s neck as jaemin walked toward renjun. renjun tensed. if he could grip his sword any tighter, he did.

“what the hell did you do to him?” renjun demanded, voice loud and clear throughout the clearing. the smile on jaemin’s face faded as he tried to step closer. but before he could step any closer, renjun brandished his sword between the two of them. vines twisted around the sword’s brown blade, seemingly moving in their spots.

“calm down. let me talk. i don’t want to fight—”

renjun’s blade shot forward with lightning speed. jaemin jumped back, jeno still on top of him, cooing and making puppy-like noises as he hugged him. “wrong answer,” renjun growled.

jaemin glared at renjun, eyes flashing like a flare in the night, clenching his bared, sharp teeth. he jumped up, landing on one of the lower branches. he sat jeno down on one, and jeno whimpered in response and stretched his arms out like a child when the demon jumped back to the ground. he looked at renjun, a smirk spreading across his face, while he flexed his fingers.

“i wanted a talk, you wanted a fight. who am i to not entertain my guest if he truly wants to?”

renjun breathed through his nostrils. “breath of the forest, second form: zen of the woods.”

renjun shot forward towards jaemin, sword in the air, ready to chop off his head. no sound penetrated his ears. he went in a straight line, focused only on jaemin’s neck and torso. four consecutive slashes hacked at whatever was in front of renjun, but his blade met the bark of the great pine, carving out the chinese character that meant “tree.” immediately he was on the ground, his ears ringing from the blow he experienced from the right. renjun’s sword was stuck in the tree, jaemin standing next to it, face radiating evil glee. he enjoyed the way renjun’s small body trembled in pain as he walked towards him.

jaemin grabbed renjun’s hair and forced him up, holding his head close enough that they could kiss. “i. don’t. want. a. fight. i hope you’re convinced.”

renjun continued to glare. “hell no.”

renjun managed to make it on two legs while jaemin was pulling him up. with one leg, he kicked jaemin back, then he rushed to his sword and pulled it out with a grunt. he made a diagonal slicing motion, cutting part of jaemin’s head off. jaemin’s attractive face was slashed, the upper right corner of his head was sliced clean off. blood covered half his face, dripping down his neck, off his chin, getting soaked up by the ground and his clothes alike. renjun made a satisfactory sound when he saw he had penetrated the bone, but he wasn’t completely satisfied when he had only cut _part_ of the demon’s head, not the whole. like all other demons he faced before, the chopped part of jaemin’s face grew back within a matter of seconds, the pink tissue sprouting up and attaching themselves to each other.

with a low growl, jaemin charged toward renjun, whose knuckles turned white after witnessing the healing spectacle before him. jaemin’s fingers were spread out, ready to scratch the soft, delicate skin that graced renjun’s pretty face. he smiled sadistically, fully prepared for the bloodshed about to take place. but the door of the box on renjun’s back squeaked on its hinges as it lay open, and instead of renjun’s bloodied face before him, he saw a muzzled beauty holding his ripped off right arm. she tossed it aside, glaring at him as an amused smile made its way onto his face.

“a demon? oh, i’ve heard of you!” jaemin exclaimed, pointing at nezuko with his left hand while his right regrew. he then tilted his head to the side. “though i thought the human travelling with you had _hanafuda_ earrings.”

in a flash, jaemin’s left arm fell to the ground. the black blade gleamed in the moonlight as yuta stared at the ground, some of his hair falling out from the neat ponytail he had pulled it into earlier. his clothes were covered in the blood of the demon he had slain before coming, and the blood coming from the top of his head covered the scar on the left side of his forehead.

“that would be me,” he panted. “touch my sister and you lose your head.” he turned towards renjun. “sorry i’m a bit late. got here as fast as i could.”

“no worries,” jaemin said, switching back to his nonchalant tone. “i wasn’t planning on fighting, anyway. but this one did.” he gestured towards a seething renjun behind nezuko. “poor guy didn’t even let me talk.”

yuta breathed in deeply. he sheathed his sword, placed nezuko next to him, and folded his arms. “then i will.”

renjun’s face held an incredulous look. “yuta, you—”

“shut up and listen, renjun. learn how to control yourself. you could’ve avoided all this if you just let him talk.” yuta pointed at jaemin. “one minute to explain yourself. i don’t know what that’ll do for you, though, since you’re probably going to die one way or another.”

“aw, and i was hoping to escape death,” jaemin pouted, but his tone faltered, and both renjun and yuta could see him tremble no matter how hard he tried to suppress it. jaemin snapped his fingers before he began to talk. “i-i… look. i lived over sixty years as a demon. that doesn’t seem very long compared to the others, but i’ve done a lot of bad things in that time period.”

“as expected,” renjun retorted. yuta stepped on his foot to shut him up.

“when i met jeno, i thought he would be another one of my beautiful ornaments. the plan was simple: move to a new school, find some pretty boys to eat. the looks on their faces are always the best when they die. adds a nice touch to the taste of their soft, young flesh.

“but while i was dating him, there was something about him that i liked. one night he brought back my memories of my parents. the next night he brought back the happy memories of my childhood. and the next night, he brought back memories of my family’s attempt to cross the border. every single detail. and that night, i mourned for them sixty years after their deaths. to remember my human life, all those years ago, angered me. i didn’t want to feel human. i wanted to feel superior to them. so i decided to end things and eat jeno.”

renjun wrapped his fingers around his sword. yuta placed a hand on his as both a warning and reassurance. “let him finish.”

jaemin’s eyes fell to the ground. his hands yanked at his dark brown hair. “i couldn’t kill him. not at all. i lied to him and to myself about eating him and why i kept him alive. i put him under my spell and kept him in it, too afraid of what he would do if i brought him out of the trance. i guess i didn’t want him to leave me.” he looked up as a tear slid down his face. “he made me feel human again, and i felt like a monster for killing and eating all those people because of it. i thought eating that arm would make me feel more like a demon, but it did the opposite, really.” he let out a bitter chuckle. “all i could taste was that disgusting metallic taste of blood.”

“what are you trying to say?” renjun spat.

jaemin’s hands dropped from his hair to his sides. he looked up with a new determination in his eyes. “i want to change. i’m willing to take whatever punishment i deserve. just please, please don’t kill me. i want to be with jeno. i promise i won’t kill anyone else. please.”

renjun shoved past yuta, disregarding his protests not to get close. he stood an arms length in front of jaemin, the glare not leaving his face. the two had a staring contest. renjun searched the demon’s sad, watery eyes for any sign of dishonestly. when he could find none, he grunted out: “i’ll forgive you after your punishment.”

when renjun returned to yuta’s side (it was more of nezuko’s side. he held her hand and squeezed it), yuta spoke up. “i have a proposal. you have only two options for punishment: die and be reincarnated or be tortured to satisfy those you have killed. when we send you to the corps, they will rip your eyeballs out. slice open your stomach and rip your guts out. chop your tongue off. tear your limbs off slowly, one by one. there is a day staff and night staff. you will spend all twenty four hours in pain and suffering. one method of torture for each person you kill. when you’ve endured all that, you will turn over a new leaf. what do you say?”

by that time jaemin was petrified. renjun found it satisfying that the predator began to feel like prey. but jaemin nodded. “i’ll do it.”

“be honest. how many people did you kill?”

“i killed about a hundred people a year. for sixty years. that’s a little over six thousand.”

“are you sure about this? it’s better off dying, you know,” renjun interjected.

“i want to be with jeno. i don’t care how long or how painful my punishment will be. as long as i’m with him in the end, it’ll be fine,” jaemin said, looking at jeno lovingly as the latter struggled to get back to the ground. jaemin walked over to him and helped him down. the dry leaves crunched under jaemin’s feet as he gasped and stumbled backward in surprise. jeno gave him a bone crushing hug.

“come back for me,” jeno whispered against his shoulder.

jaemin stroked the back of his head. “of course.”

“is he still under that spell of yours?” renjun asked skeptically.

“i snapped my fingers before i started speaking. that should have broken it,” jaemin replied, letting jeno run to renjun and yuta.

jeno engulfed them in a hug, crying. “i really thought i was gonna die. i should’ve listened to you guys. good thing the demon i wound up with was jaemin, though,” he choked out between his cries, a small chortle coming out with them. he looked up. “a-and… is that nezuko? is that a _muzzle_?”

yuta chuckled. “yeah. she’s a demon, but don’t worry. she’s nice.”

jeno’s eyes then trailed down to renjun’s hand holding nezuko’s. he smiled at renjun, his eyes lighting up the night. “no wonder you keep rejecting those confessions from the girls in our class.”

renjun blushed, pushing jeno’s head away from him. “shut up,” he mumbled. “i was worried about you, you know. i thought you died.”

“but i didn’t. i’m here right now. thank you for coming for me. both of you.”

yuta smiled. “of course, jeno. you’re the glue that binds our friend group. chenle and jisung cried their eyes out when they found out you went missing. we should get you home, yeah?”

jeno nodded, looking back at jaemin with a sad smile. he walked towards him. “i’d be lying if i said you shouldn’t be punished for all those people you killed and ate. but i’m glad you changed and are willing to endure the punishment. i’ll be waiting.” jeno placed his hands on jaemin’s hips and leaned forward, pressing a kiss against his lips.

yuta smiled as he looked at the two. he couldn’t wait until jaemin got out of his punishment. “come on, guys. the sun’s almost up. renjun, could you hand me nezuko’s box, please?”

༺═──────────────═༻

jeno’s knuckles turned white as he held his chopsticks over his lunch. renjun noticed and put a comforting hand on his back. “this about jaemin again?”

“it’s his fifth day.”

“i’m gonna be honest with you, jeno,” renjun said, removing the metal chopsticks from jeno’s hand and placing them next to his school lunch. “jaemin’s not okay. he’s been suffering day in and day out, and it’s gonna stay that way for about two more years. six thousand lives are a lot to atone for. and they’re not going to feed him while they torture him. then when he’s released, he won’t be able to control his hunger. that’s when tamayo and yushiro comes in.”

“tamayo? yushiro?”

“friends of yuta. they work with the corps, though their relationship is a bit strained on the slayers’ part. they’ll teach him how to sustain himself by drinking a little bit of human blood. that’ll take about another year.”

“we’ll have graduated by then.”

“that’s true,” renjun hummed, ”but it’ll pass by like a breeze. you two will be with each other soon. i know it.”

jeno rested his head on renjun’s shoulder, looking up at the comforting fluorescent lights of the school’s cafeteria. “i hope so.”


End file.
